Paramount Unveils New Logo for 100th Anniversary

I love studio logos. After the lights go down and the crowd goes silent, the logo is the first official sign the movie experience is about to begin. I have an especially strong connection with the Paramount logo. Whenever those stars swoop in and encircle the picturesque mountain, I hear the opening theme of The Godfather. I can’t find the video, but those iconic horns sound right as the first star settles in at the side of the mountain. So I am excited that Paramount is celebrating their 100th anniversary by an updating the logo. It is mostly the same, but somehow even more picturesque, if you can imagine that.

The logo will first be seen on the December 16 IMAX release of Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol. Hit the jump to see the new logo in full, plus a look at how the logo has evolved over the years.

Click for high resolution

Here is the press release with all the details:

PARAMOUNT PICTURES UNVEILS NEW LOGO IN CELEBRATION OF THE STUDIO’S 100TH ANNIVERSARY

New Logo Will Be Seen With “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol”

HOLLYWOOD, CA (December 14, 2011) – Paramount Pictures today unveiled a new company logo that commemorates the studio’s 100th Anniversary in show business. The new logo can be seen on the new Tom Cruise starrer, MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – GHOST PROTOCOL. The movie will open in IMAX and on other premium large format screens on Friday, December 16th and in theatres everywhere on December 21st.

The studio’s first logo, a symbol of a rugged, snow-covered peak from the Wasatch mountain range, was created in 1916. The 100th Anniversary logo was created by Devastudios, Inc.

Paramount will use the logo throughout its centennial year in 2012. Beginning in 2013, the wordingabout the 100th anniversary will be removed from the logo, with the rest of the design remaining in use.

Someone put together this neat cut of three variants of the logo in action:

Finally, a collection of a few of the different logos over the years, courtesy of CLG Wiki: